


Nowhere in the City of the Lost

by noctiflorence111223



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Teenagers, Angst and Feels, Canon-Typical Violence, Family, Family Bonding, Family Drama, Family Feels, Family Issues, Gen, Hisoka is his own warning, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Mental Breakdown, Mental Health Issues, Meteor City | Ryuuseigai (Hunter X Hunter), Non-Graphic Violence, Platonic Relationships, Pre-Canon, Redemption, Sibling Bonding, Sibling Love, Siblings, Wholesome
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-26 06:15:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30101565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noctiflorence111223/pseuds/noctiflorence111223
Summary: Illumi Zoldyck had lived most of his life in a bubble, always doing what he was told. To him, the words “right” and “wrong” were nothing more than meaningless garbage people spread to excuse their actions or criticize their enemies. But something changed when he witnessed his siblings falling down the same path, and, for once in his life, he decided to take a stand. Where will this choice lead him?This is an Illumi Meteor City AU a friend and I came up with. It begins around 8~ years before canon events, and follows the Zoldyck siblings’ life in an unforgiving city, while also dealing with Hisoka's unpredictable nature and the neighborhood nuisances.Big special shoutout to @I_make_horrible_art on Instagram for helping me out with the story
Relationships: Alluka Zoldyck & Killua Zoldyck, Hisoka & Illumi Zoldyck, Hisoka & Kuroro Lucifer | Chrollo Lucifer, Illumi Zoldyck & Everyone, Illumi Zoldyck & Kalluto Zoldyck, Illumi Zoldyck & Kikyou Zoldyck, Illumi Zoldyck & Killua Zoldyck, Illumi Zoldyck & Milluki Zoldyck, Illumi Zoldyck & Silva Zoldyck, Kalluto Zoldyck & Milluki Zoldyck, Killua Zoldyck & Milluki Zoldyck, Kuroro Lucifer | Chrollo Lucifer & Illumi Zoldyck, Machi & Pakunoda (Hunter X Hunter)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10





	Nowhere in the City of the Lost

A bump in the road jolted Milluki awake. It appeared to be morning, if not noon, but Killua and Alluka were still fast asleep in his arms, cuddled with him in the backseat. His eyes ached, a sign of having slept way too little. After all, he _was_ a growing boy.

He peeked out the window, and, to his surprise, he saw an endless stretch of barren wasteland. Even the sky was a sickly shade of grayish yellow.

“Where… are we?”

Upon hearing him, Illumi turned his head. “Oh, good, you’re awake.”

He sat in the passenger’s seat, and, despite his neutral voice and deadpan expression, Milluki could tell he was tired. Hell, he looked more tired than he’d ever seen him, which was an almost impossible feat. He looked pale, his mid-length hair had lost its usual shine, and purplish bags stretched under his eyes. Milluki wondered how he was even awake at this point. He was holding a sleeping Kalluto with one arm, who he’d wrapped up in a purple hoodie.

The driver was just a butler who he’d stabbed with three needles.

“To answer your question,” Illumi said, “this is mom’s hometown.”

Milluki’s eyes widened. “You mean Meteor city?”

As a response, Illumi smiled, patting Milluki on the head with his free hand. “You’ve always been so smart.”

If they weren’t brothers, Milluki would probably be pretty freaked out by his smile. They’d both inherited their mother’s eyes (or so he’d been told, as he’d never actually _seen_ his mother’s eyes), but Illumi seemed to have grown into them, much unlike Milluki. You could barely see his eye whites or irises. Instead, you were faced with endless pitch black pupils, so dark they seemed to be spiraling inwards, which gave off quite the freakish effect.

His smile was warm, though.

“Hey, knock it off with the sappy compliments!” Milluki laughed, knocking his brother’s hand off his head. “You’re acting like mom!”

Illumi’s face seemed to age 10 years before Milluki could even realize he’d said something wrong.

“Wait, no, I didn’t mean it that way!”

Right, right, of course he’d dislike being compared to his mother. Especially after what had happened the night before.

-

Truth be told, Milluki didn’t know much about what had happened - he’d been too sleepy to properly register what was going on. Illumi had been very troubled over the course of the months leading up to the fight. If he were to pin-point the time it started, he’d probably say it was when people started talking about Killua becoming head of the family. 

Originally, it was brushed off as just jealousy, after all, “most talented Zoldyck in generations'' is a heavy title, but time proved that “jealousy” wasn’t the right word. 

Illumi stopped taking assasination jobs, and instead hung around his siblings around more - that was also when he started calling Alluka a “she.” He started asking Milluki odd questions too, such as whether or not he'd ever wanted to quit being an assassin, or where he’d like to go in the future, or what he’d like to be when he grew up. He told him stories of the world beyond Kukuroo Mountain, of beautiful sights and interesting people, and asked him what he really wanted to do with his life.

Milluki never knew how to answer these questions, but listening to his brother talk brought them closer together.

And all of these subtle changes culminated the night before: when their parents started the electricity resistance training on Killua.

Right before it all changed, Illumi pulled Milluki into a hallway and told him to pack his things. He’d never seen his brother panic before, even if he was trying to hide his panic. It was the first time he’d heard his voice break from its usual monotony. He smelled of medicine.

_“I would have liked for us to have more time to plan, but they’re forcing my hand. I’ll get us out of here tonight, so stay strong for me, okay?”_

His smile looked sad.

Milluki had tried to eavesdrop on the conversation Illumi had with their parents, but he only managed to catch their mother’s incoherent screaming… And then came their father’s laughter: _“Go ahead then, leave!”_ he said _“We’re not going to stop you.”_

Milluki read that as a tease, but Illumi took the opportunity.

And so, they left.

-

“I’m really sorry I said that.” Milluki said looking out the window.

“Huh?” replied Illumi, turning towards him again. “Oh, you’re still thinking about that? I overreacted, sorry. I’m fine now.”

_‘And there he goes again.’_ Illumi sure was unpredictable.

Milluki’s eyes wandered down on his little brother, sleeping peacefully with his head on his shoulder. Killua had white hair, like their father and grandfather, so he stood out a lot when with his siblings. His hands were wrapped up in bandages, and scrappy ones at that, as Illumi had applied first aid in a hurry while hiding from their parents. Sometimes, Milluki thought they all babied him too much.

But he couldn’t be the judge of that, as he’d never gone through the electricity resistance training for some reason. Their parents seemed to have skipped Milluki altogether when choosing an heir, instead keeping him inside all day and occupying him with intellectual activities. He was a master at chess before he’d even learned how to walk. 

He never questioned that, but sometimes he did wonder how different his life could’ve been if they’d treated him the same as Illumi and Killua.

“You can stop the car here.” Illumi said, his eyes fixed on a silhouette in the distance. The complete desert from before had been replaced with heaps of trash.

“Mil,” Illumi said, “Wake the kids up, we’re getting out.”

-

The first thing he noticed getting out of the car was the putrid smell. He’d smelled that before: the smell of death, but this was _way_ worse than anything he’d smelled on his missions. He guessed the corpses must have been decomposing for quite a while.

There weren’t many people out, and the ones that _were_ around looked like astronauts wearing gas masks and hazmat suits.

He held one of Alluka’s hands in his, and held Killua’s forearm in the other, so he wouldn’t touch his burns.

“Eww, this smells bad.” Alluka said, holding her nose.

Just as Illumi joined their side and placed a hand on Milluki’s shoulder, Milluki noticed what Illumi’s eyes were fixed on.

A young man approached the group, waving one of his hands. “Illumi~” he sang

He looked a fair bit older than Illumi, although the acne breakout on his face could probably debunk that idea. What caught Milluki’s attention, however, was his bright pink hair, standing out awkwardly in the monochromatic wasteland. He was dressed in bland clothing, a plain hoodie and jeans.

Milluki felt his brother’s hand twitch on his shoulder. He could already tell this man was annoying: he reminded him of that stupid brand of gum he’d always hated.

“Long time no see, Hisoka.” Illumi said, tensing up.

The stranger - Hisoka, apparently - beamed. “I’m glad you made it out of there, and, oh! You managed to bring your siblings too!” 

“Yes.” Illumi said between his teeth. “I really cannot thank you enough for your help, I couldn’t have done this without you… but leave my siblings out of this. They have nothing to do with you.”

“My, my, how hostile. You‘re acting like a single mother.”

“And you’re acting like you need to **mind your own business.** ”

The smile faded off Hisoka’s face. “Relax.” he said, crossing his arms. “If I really wanted to harm your siblings, I would’ve done so already. I don’t want you to slit my throat in my sleep. That would be a boring way to die.”

His remark seemed to calm Illumi down. He took a deep breath and took his hand off Milluki’s shoulder.

“I guess you’re right.” he said. “But can we please go inside now? We’re all tired, and I’d rather not stay in the open.”

“Of course~” Hisoka smiled. “Follow me!”

-

The center of the city was… well, it was better than the heaps of trash on the outskirts, but not by much. Houses built from scraps stood wobbling next to concrete blocks, looking as if they’d topple over at the slightest touch. A large cathedral shot up into the sky from some kind of plaza, appearing to be much more maintained than the other buildings. Hisoka led the siblings through a cramped alley into one of the aforementioned concrete blocks, although a more deteriorated one than the ones in view from the main street.

Going up a flight of stairs, Milluki noticed a few curious stares their way. Well, it wasn’t too surprising - a large party dressed in expensive clothing was bound to stand out in a city where people live off waste.

“Here we are.” Hisoka said, standing in front of a surprisingly well-maintained door. He pulled out a key from his pocket and opened the door to the apartament.

What greeted them was a “living room,” if you could even call it that. The floor was made out of gray concrete, just like the walls, but an old rug had been placed over it in a sloppy attempt at decorating the place. A few built-in cabinets framed a TV straight out of a post-apocalyptic survival game: it was at least four decades old, and the screen was completely shattered, but the sound still worked, although it only let out static since the antenna was crooked.

The world’s most hideous couch was placed opposite the TV-ish thing, but that didn’t mean much, since they were only a couple of feet apart, just far enough to let a single person pass through. The wall with the cabinets on it was broken up by a door that led to some kind of hallway, and past the “living room” seemed to be some kind of equally narrow kitchen.

The ceiling had bits of cardboard glued onto it, likely to stop the leakage from above.

Truth be told, though, Milluki was too tired to care. If it had a bed, the apartment was perfect.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Being 16 sucked. It sucked for the 16 year old in question and for every other party involved. But being a 16-year-old runaway providing for 4 children sucked the most.

Meteor city was a place where anything could be dumped, but it was also a place where everyone who did not want to be found went. So, naturally, Illumi decided it would be the best place to hide.

He tucked Alluka and Killua into bed. They had managed to score a 2 bedroom apartment, a fairly rare thing to come by in Meteor city, although the mold and broken windows likely made up for that. They decided Alluka and Killua could share a room, while he, Milluki and Kalluto got the other. That was because Milluki and Illumi were the oldest, so they were best fit to watch Kalluto, the youngest.

Illumi really wasn’t looking forward to trying to change a 2-year-old’s diapers, though.

Hisoka leaned on the doorframe, a sly smile spreading across his face as Illumi turned towards him.

“What a caring brother you ar-” 

“Stop.” Illumi said. “Let’s go outside first.”

Hisoka didn’t bother answering back. He nodded, and went out into the hall, closing the door on his way out. 

Hisoka was… quite a bothersome fellow, but he was the key to keeping his little siblings safe. While Illumi had been planning for this to happen for several months, he was still a minor, meaning that his parents controlled his finances. 

In such a situation, a legal adult like Hisoka was essential in ensuring there’d be a roof over their heads. Illumi had taken money out of his account little-by-little, claiming he needed it for clothing, hair care products, and whatever else he could come up with, and instead had Hisoka deposit it in his account. 

He could’ve just ran with the money. Hell, Illumi had almost hoped he would’ve done that instead, because now…

He exited the apartment, finding himself face-to-face with Hisoka. His face looked distorted and sick, and you could sense his bloodlust from across the city.

He licked his lips.

“I guess it’s time to return the favor.” Illumi said, walking past him.

“Indeed~”

-

They’d chosen an emptier zone near the outskirts of the city. The unfortunate aesthetics were nothing compared to the nauseating smell, the stench of death lingering in the dusty air.

Hisoka was the most hedonistic person Illumi knew. To him, it didn’t matter whether he lived or died, so he chased things that gave him the most pleasure, as in, he longed for fighting strong opponents. He’d agreed to help Illumi under the condition that he’d fight him.

Illumi couldn’t help being creeped out by Hisoka, though.

“Before we begin,” Illumi said, “I just have one question.”

“Go on.”

“You’re not going to kill me here, are you?”

“That entirely depends on you.” Hisoka laughed. “After all, you’ll be fighting to kill. I know what you’re thinking, you believe that I am no longer of use to you, that I know too much, and that I’m a threat to your family.”

Scared wasn’t the right word to describe what Illumi was feeling.

No, he was never scared in fights.

“That means you’ll take this as an opportunity to eliminate me,” he said. “I can’t wait to see what you’re willing to do.”

_“Never fight an enemy you can’t defeat.”_ The words rang through Illumi’s head, having been drilled into him ever since he was old enough to take a life.

“You’re right,” he said. “I’m not planning on losing here.

He couldn’t beat Hisoka in a fight. 

Illumi hadn’t even seen his nen yet, but he was already sure of that much. But he was an assassin, not a hunter. He didn’t care about the means, only the ends. 

He was going to lose here. And that was going to be fine.

Hopefully.

But… what was this pit in his stomach, this ringing in his ears, this horrible, horrible headache.

“Now,” Hisoka smiled.

Well, whatever. He had no time for a vocabulary quiz

“Begin!”

Not even a millisecond later, Illumi shot under a broken-down car. Hisoka jumped back, balancing on a pile of trash, looking around for Illumi.

_‘He’s giving me the advantage of attacking first.’_

That situation looked tricky: Illumi was tired, he couldn’t even remember the last time he’d slept or the last meal he’d eaten, while Hisoka was in peak shape. All he could do was pray his skills were enough to keep him alive for now.

Plus, they were being watched.

Well, he could take care of that later.

He pulled out a needle and rushed out from under the car, hiding behind a fridge. He wasn’t sure if it accounted for anything, but, between the two, Illumi was the more experienced fighter.

Would that be enough to turn the tables?

Illumi crouched, drawing closer while making sure not to make any noise. 

Easy.

He jumped, closing the gap between him and Hisoka.

He went in for a punch, hoping Hisoka would guard against it and he could stab the needle.

Wait.

Hisoka didn’t guard.

The punch landed, and Hisoka’s twisted smile only grew wider.

He could still put the needle in- no! Before he could even reach out his hand, he got hit by some kind of object from the side, knocking him off his balance.

He fell over onto a bunch of soda cans, scraping the skin off his elbow.

Was he hit by a projectile? No - it seemed to be some type of engine. There was no way Hisoka could even lift that up, much less throw it. Then how-

He used _gyo_ , finally spotting the pinkish, rubbery strings attached to the object and to his abdomen.

So _that’s_ what was happening.

It was time to bring out the big guns.

Illumi was at a disadvantage in desolate places, as his ability relied on controlling other people. He was aware of this. To counter that, he’d stabbed a dozen or so needles into people they’d passed by on their way here, whispering an order for them to follow him.

“Attack.” he said, loud enough for all the needle-men to hear.

The smile faded off Hisoka’s face, watching needle-men emerge from under piles of trash and rubble.

Well, they were short lived, as the moment they got close to Hisoka, they got taken out by a card enhanced by nen - a single, powerful blow.

But that just meant the distraction had worked. 

Illumi closed in, adjusting his hand so his nails would be sharp enough to tear through skin. He aimed for Hisoka’s guts. He wouldn’t die, but he would need immediate medical attention.

Except, just as he was about to rip through his skin, he felt himself lifted into the air.

Crap.

Just before he hit the ground, he saw Hisoka’s face, reeking of disappointment.

And then a thud caused everything to go dark.

Concern. The word describing what he’d felt back then, right before fighting, was concern. 

-

Nothing hurts more than opening your eyes after being knocked out, only to see this accursed, godforsaken pink haired blight on the earth crouching over you.

“Welcome back~” he sang. 

Illumi slapped him and pushed himself up into a sitting position.

“Wow, rude.”

“How long was I out for?”

“Just a few seconds, don’t worry.” Hisoka replied, rolling his eyes as he got up. “I took care to not injure you too badly.”

To that, Illumi could only nod, placing a dirty hand over his forehead.

“But, I must say, you’ve really disappointed me,”

Yes!

“... but you are still unripe. One day, we’ll fight for real. Next time I won’t baby you.”

It worked!

Illumi stood up, wiping the dirt off his clothes while trying to hide his relief.

“Until then,” Hisoka continued, “I’ll be more than happy to help you around. Feel free to give me a call!”

And just like that, he disappeared.

The plan had worked. He’d given it his all and lost, convincing Hisoka to give him a second chance to witness his potential. Well, there wasn’t going to be a second fight - hopefully, he’d manage to kill him before then.

As for the 3rd party… they seemed to have disappeared.

Illumi didn’t like the thought of a stranger, possibly even multiple strangers knowing of his ability, but there wasn’t much he could do about that now.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“I think he’s controlling the zombies.” said an unenthusiastic voice.

Pakunoda looked up from what she was doing, watching her friends peek at some kind of conflict from behind a pile of tires.

“You have a good eye, Machi. He must be a manipulator-type.”

What a headache. Why was she hanging out with a bunch of teenagers, again?

She went back to looking through the bag they’d stolen. She had to admit it did make her feel a little bad to take things from people in this city, but they needed to eat too.

“A what type now?”

“A manipulator is a nen category.”

Pakunoda pulled a watch out from the bag, smiling at her discovery. It looked quite expensive, they could probably sell it for a couple hundred jenny at the pawn shop, which would be enough to eat for the night.

“And there you go again with your theory. You only need to know your own category, right? I’m a Transmuter, why should I care about this Manipulator stuff?”

“Because it’s helpful in a fight.”

“Yeah, yeah, when are we going to run into more nen users in Meteor City?”

The wallet in the bag was mostly empty, aside for a few coins. Pity. There was a bunch of makeup in the bag, though, but Pakunoda wasn’t sure how much they could get for some used makeup. Maybe she could just keep it for herself, in that case.

“Well, for starters, there’s two of them right there. And, since the book I picked up on it was at a yard sale, you’d assume there are more copies on it.”

The bag itself was decent, Pakunoda thought it could probably sell for a few hundred jenny as well. It was rare to see any type of accessory in such good condition around here. It did look a little old, but the colors were still vibrant. Overall, it was a great find.

“I think you should go touch some grass and take your head out of the clouds.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, could you point me to the nearest patch of grass then, duchess grass-toucher?”

Pakunoda sighed. “Would you two cut it out? I’m trying to think here.”

“Oh, right, right, sorry miss adult,” Machi spat, “we’ll let you think since you’re _so_ responsible.”

Teenagers were a huge pain. Well, she was only 20 herself, she shouldn’t be going around talking like a grandma.

“Well,” Pakunoda got up, hearing her bones snap into place. “I’m done with this bag. We should probably go and meet up with the others, unless we want those guys to notice us. Are you done _now?”_

Machi clicked her tongue. 

“I guess.” she shrugged, joining Pakunoda. 

Machi was a nice kid, a little snappy and hot-headed, but soft when you got to know her. She tried to put on a tough front to avoid being hurt, but despite her poor manners, she genuinely cared for her friends, and that’s what mattered. Pakunoda saw her as some kind of little sister. Of course, she would rather die than admit that, though.

“Are you coming, Chrollo?”

As for this Chrollo kid… he was a little more worrying. That wasn’t to say he wasn’t nice too, but he was much more... confusing in his behavior than Machi. He seemed absent-minded and focused at the same time, if that was even possible. He could be actively talking to you one moment, then suddenly be so spaced-out he couldn’t even hear you.

“... Nah.” he shrugged. “I want to see how this fight ends. I think it would help me figure out what type of ability I want to have.”

And he always seemed to be scheming something.

Kids these days, sheesh.

“Well,” Machi rubbed her temples. “There’s no arguing with that, I guess. Don’t get killed. Oh- and don’t fall into a pothole again like last time.”

“Will do.”

**Author's Note:**

> Wooh, alright, so that was chapter 1. I think it turned out decent, although I definitely did not enjoy writing half of those Hisoka lines... Creepy much?  
> Well, that aside I sincerely hope you guys enjoyed this! I'll try updating as frequently as I can, but I'm juggling this with writing original work, many other hobbies and my studies.   
> (Not sure if I went too hard on the Chrollo slander haha)
> 
> \- Noc


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